Climate change: How climate change is already affecting the North West
You don't need to look to the other side of the world to see the effects of climate change.
Right here in the North West, our climate is changing.
Extreme weather events, like flooding, heatwaves, droughts and fires, are happening with more frequency and intensity, which scientists say is down to global warming.
There's concern that in the future more and more areas of the region will fall victim to flooding, many that have never been affected before.
Dr Liz Bentley, from the Royal Meteorological Society, said: "As the atmosphere warms it holds more moisture and we get more intense rainfall events.
"We're already seeing those and we're going to see a likelihood of those increasing as well.
"And even for parts of the North West we're going to see wild fires, so by the middle of century we're likely to see 40% increase in the number of wildfires as well."
Andy added: "I've heard recently the response to climate change described as a bird. Birds that fly have two wings that work equally.
"On one side we have mitigation, reducing those emissions, on the other side we've got adaptation, we need to do both of those just as much to make the bird fly."
Last year, 2020, was the sixth wettest year on record in a series going back to 1862.
But as world leaders meet in Glasgow for the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), just how much are we likely to be affected by climate change here in the North West and why should we be bothered?
Weather presenter Jo Blythe talks about how we can see the effects of climate change on weather already:
The COP27 climate conference - what you need to know
What is COP27? When and where will it be?
What is COP27? When and where will it be?
Each year, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) meets at what is called the Conference of the Parties (abbreviated as COP) to discuss the world's progress on climate change and how to tackle it.
COP27 is the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties summit which will be held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt from November 6-18.
Who is going?
Who is going?
Leaders of the 197 countries that signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) - a treaty that came into force in 1994 - are invited to the summit.
These are some of the world leaders that will be attending COP27:
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is attending the conference, after initially saying he wouldn't as he was too busy focusing on the economy within his first weeks in office.
US President Joe Biden and his experienced climate envoy, John Kerry, will appear at the talks.
France President Emmanuel Macron will also be among the heads of state from around the world staying in Egypt.
King Charles III will not be attending COP27, despite being a staunch advocate for the environment. The decision was made jointly by Buckingham Palace and former prime minister Liz Truss.
Elsewhere, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping will not attend the talks just as they decided to do for COP26.
What is it hoping to achieve?
What is it hoping to achieve?
1. Ensure full implementation of the Paris Agreement and putting negotiations into concrete actions - included within this is the target of limiting global warming to well below 2C.
2. Cementing progress on the critical workstreams of mitigation, adaptation, finance and loss and damage, while stepping up finance notably to tackle the impacts of climate change.
3. Enhancing the delivery of the principles of transparency and accountability throughout the UN Climate Change process.
Liam Fairey's pub, the Ribchester Arms, has been hit by flooding twice in five years - it now means he is unable to get insurance.
He said: "The first flood in Boxing Day 2015 shut the business for 101 days. It was just complete devastation, we had to have a full refurb, everything had to be replaced.
"The second flood in February 2020 was six meters high, it was the highest the river has ever been recorded at.
"So again it was all through the building, everything we weren't able to move to the highest part of the building was lost in the flood, and it was the last time I was able to be insured for flooding."
Flood defences costing tens of thousands of pounds have now been installed, but Liam is resigned to the fact it is not if they'll be hit again - but when.
He said: "We do know it is going to happen again there's no getting away from it, we're at the bottom of a flood plain and when heavy rain comes it has nowhere to go but here.
"It might be tomorrow, it might be next month, it might be in 10 years, but it definitely will happen again and I think it'll happen more frequently."
Trying to adapt to that is what the experts say is key, just four miles down the road in Preston there are big plans for new flood defences.
A total of £54million is being spent on the project, protecting around 5,000 homes and businesses from flooding.
But it is not all about traditional flood defences - there's a growing move towards using nature to help protect against flooding.
In Bolton on the Smithalls estate - they are putting in eco friendly measures like willow thickets and log dams to soak up water and keep it at higher ground for longer - protecting the towns and cities below.
And above Stalybridge - they've been introducing leaky dams a natural flood defence that mimics the natural obstruction caused by trees or branches falling into a river, all in an effort to make the region more resilient to future flooding.